Family seeks inquiry after ICE agent kills man in Houston traffic stop

The family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo is calling for an investigation after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot him during a traffic stop in Houston. The shooting adds to scrutiny of federal immigration operations under President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign, with The Associated Press reporting it was at least the eighth known death during an encounter with federal immigration officers since the crackdown began.

Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, was killed Tuesday. His relatives spoke publicly Wednesday, saying he was working when he died and had been driving a crew to a home construction site in the Houston area.

The family said Salgado Araujo may have believed the people stopping him in unmarked vehicles were trying to steal his tools. They said he had lived in the United States for 35 years, had no criminal record and was trying to obtain legal status.

His son, Ronaldo Salgado, said at the news conference that his father supported three sons who are US citizens. “He did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be reduced to a headline of ‘Mexican man shot and killed by ICE’,” he said.

Ronaldo Salgado described his father as a husband, father and employer who helped other workers pursue “the American dream.” He also said the family had completed paperwork and appointments as Salgado Araujo sought a work permit and legal status.

DHS says agent fired after vehicle was struck

The US Department of Homeland Security said Salgado Araujo was targeted because he was in the country without documentation. DHS said he struck an ICE vehicle with his car and then tried to ram an ICE agent, prompting the agent to shoot.

No official video or photographs of the shooting have been released, according to The Associated Press. A bystander recorded the aftermath.

Ronaldo Salgado said he searched for his father at the job site after his mother was told something had happened. He said he later saw video of his father wounded in the street and recognized him by his voice as he cried for help.

The Trump administration initially said its deportation effort would focus on criminals, according to The Associated Press. It later said it considered anyone in the United States without documentation to be a criminal. Rights groups have accused immigration officers of using broad enforcement tactics under pressure to meet detention quotas; the administration has denied that such quotas exist.

Latino civil rights group criticizes shooting

Roman Palomares, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said at the Wednesday news conference that the immigration crackdown had created conditions where officers believe they can “shoot and explain later.” He said Latinos were being treated as targets during enforcement actions.

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum also condemned the killing. She said she was considering legal action or an appeal to the United Nations, and described Salgado Araujo as another Mexican national killed in the United States over detention issues when his only “offence” was lacking proper documentation.

The Associated Press compared the early federal account of the Houston shooting with the January killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. DHS officials initially said Good, a US citizen, tried to ram an ICE agent, but video appeared to show her steering around the agent before he fired after moving to the side of her vehicle.

Days after Good’s killing, 37-year-old Alex Pretti was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent and a Customs and Border Protection officer while he sought to document immigration enforcement actions in Minneapolis, according to The Associated Press. The AP reported that little has emerged from federal inquiries into those deaths and that the Justice Department declined a separate civil-rights investigation into Good’s killing.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.